Sarah cooks scrambled eggs for everyone. The meal featured eggs from her own chickens. — Photo by Nancy Woods

Ochoco Lake. — Photo by Nancy Woods

A memoir, a novel, poems and short stories where just some of the projects students worked on during the Kickstart Your Writing Retreat that took place June 24-27, 2011.

“I still consider myself a fledgling writer,” said Dave King, one of the participants. What did he appreciate about the retreat, which took place near Prineville, Oregon? “The positive feedback I’ve gotten,” King said. “That empowers me to continue, and when you continue to write you get better and better.”

For Sarah Retzer, another retreat participant, one of the benefits of the retreat was “having a place to go. I could never write for two or three hours for two days at home.” She also appreciated the constructive criticism she received during the retreat as well as the guidance and the “variety of people to give me feedback. “It’s the perfect little setting,” she said, referring to the private home on Ochoco Lake where the event was held. “Being in the presence of other writers is also helpful,” Retzer said. “I don’t feel so isolated.”

Howard Dyer also attended the event. “It’s helpful to have something structured like this, he said. “I like reading other people’s writing and learning they have a lot of the same feelings I have about the process. That is very helpful, and you couldn’t ask for a more helpful setting. It’s beautiful.”

The retreat was held at the home of June Selis, who also took part in the retreat. Plans are in the works for another, similar event.